<p>Hi guys I'm a sophomore in high school and just took my first SAT that counted and got 1970 (done with alot of prep) taking it again in abou 3 weeks to break 2000. I don't have much going for me sports wise because I suck at them but am thinking about doing track next year. My GPA is a 96/100, I have three honors classes this year (five next year), Spanish National Honors Society, will take AP's in senior year.</p>
<p>I know I'm going to go in undecided. No idea on what i want to do.</p>
<p>EC's- no sports but have volunteered at a camp twice now
-hold a treasurer position in my religious youth group
-will maybe do track next year
-will volunteer at a hospital in the summer
-will look for a job this summer
-will participate in more volunteer work as well</p>
<p>Since I'm only a sophomore in HS, I really can't apply anywhere, but I don't really have any specific place I want to go to. I always thought I'd go to TCNJ or Rutgers since I'm a Jersey Boy but now that i think about it, i want to be ABLE to go other places and not worry about financial issues. </p>
<p>What I want in a college:</p>
<p>-location- somewhere where its hot/warm all the time OR hot/cold when it should be
-partying- i like to party. i know how to control myself and know that i will not be someone who parties his whole first year and *****s up his GPA
-distance- I either wanna be close to home where I can still dorm or far away like Cali.
-Campus- I've always wanted to go to a school with a beautiful campus scene, lots of good people, good vibe, safe, partying, etc.</p>
<p>You could read the post on schools known for good merit aid or the one on what I learned about free ride to find schools you can go to for free or nearly free tuition.</p>
<p>Finances matter, so if you haven’t already done so, run one of the FAFSA forecasters to find out what you and your family would be expected to pay. Tell your parents the number, and begin the discussion about paying for college. There are colleges which are known for being generous with money, so do some research on those; there are a couple of pinned threads on that. To attract merit money, apply to a few schools where your stats would put you near the top of the incoming freshman class.</p>
<p>It’s OK that you really don’t know what you want to do at this point. But you might start thinking about what you’re looking for in a college besides warm weather and parties. Do you think you’d be happier at a large school or a small one? Urban, suburban, rural? In general, are you more drawn to the sciences, math, English/literature, a language, or something else? These are some of the filters that you can use to focus your search. And definitely get yourself a copy of the Fiske Guide to Colleges.</p>
<p>As far as ECs, don’t push yourself into sports if that’s not your natural inclination. Choose something that grabs you and pursue that instead.</p>
<p>As a parent, I have to say I’m a little concerned about how important partying is to you, especially your comment that you “know how to control yourself.” Are you talking about alcohol/drugs? Because if you’re already doing that in 10th grade, it just isn’t a good thing that partying is one of your top criteria in a college.</p>
<p>I was looking into some colleges and saw UCLA. I was wondering if you could chance me for UCLA </p>
<p>Will have a 2030 SAT atleast
GPA in the mid 90’s</p>
<p>no honors freshman year
three sophomore year
four or 5 junior year
idk about senior year but will have some AP’s</p>
<p>ECs:
Camp Counselor for two years (Volunteer)
Leadership Position at Religious Youth Group
Volunteer Work at a Hospital (summer)
Center For Food Action
Job (if i can find one, and im pretty sure i will be able to)
Track (not sure if ill do track in junior year)
REBEL (no leadership position, just member)
Spanish National Honor Society</p>
<p>Since you are not from California you will get NO financial aid beyond federal (stafford, etc). Can you afford to pay $45K/year? I don’t think so from your FA matters comment. What is your home state?</p>
<p>thanks Erin’s Dad.
But i’m probably gonna pick one of those two anyway
mom can’t be away from me lol. but oh well. But i have THREE more questions where I’m having trouble finding answers via search forum. </p>
<p>1) i know that Rutgers and TCNJ are decent schools, but since Rutgers is more nationally known, would i have a better chance of getting a job once im out of college if i went to Rutgers or TCNJ</p>
<p>2) If i go anywhere undecided, what classes do i take? Like what do i do?</p>
<p>3) At rutgers, what are requirements for getting James Dickinson Carr scholarship. I have around a 2000 SAT, around 1300 combined CR+M, maybe a little more. And by the end of senior year my GPA should be something like a 95…or does my end of junior year GPA matter?</p>
<p>ATM i really can’t say. i don’t wanna sound like a dork but i like the following:</p>
<p>-US History: idk if its because i have an amazing teacher or if i actually like the course
-i’ve been looking at political science, that seems interesting
-it’s always been a dream to work for the government, you know, the Washington D.C., FBI kinda thing LOL.
-I’m good at math: once you teach it to me, ill apply it.
-I’m not sure about sciences: I do well in chem and bio but i don’t like chem this year because of my teacher.</p>
<p>Well, that’s pretty vast list of preferences…lol</p>
<p>I would say do apply to Rutgers [seriously…don’t screw the essays] even though its a state school. You will probably get some merit money. And, unless you get a tons of aid from private colleges, you don’t want to spend $$$$ when you are still exploring majors.</p>
<p>1) I don’t know about TCNJ. However, at Rutgers every year more than 1000 employers come to interview graduating students. So, you will definitely have a job with a RU degree [unless you party a lot and end up with a 2.0GPA]</p>
<p>2) You just take various introductory classes [someone correct me if I am wrong]</p>
<p>3) Junior year GPA is critical. For the scholarship, don’t screw the essays. Other than that, your EC’s look good. Maybe the SAT’s are a tad low. Definitely get around 2050 on the SAT’s if you can.</p>
<p>@tbirds2010 Hey There - you do have a vast list of requirements, which is wonderful. Avery Educations can actually help you find what you are looking for & had great inside information of schools all over the country, and could help you with essays, timing, etc. You should check her out [Avery</a> Educational Resources](<a href=“http://www.averyeducation.com%5DAvery”>http://www.averyeducation.com). Let me know if you would like more information. She is having an application crash course in August.</p>
<p>As far as where to go, in general, the worst schools you (or anyone) can apply to are OOS publics like UCLA. You will likely get no aid at all, since that’s mostly reserved to in-state students, and yet the price is comparable to private schools. There are plently of private schools in Calif and elsewhere; do check out the threads that are pinned in several of the forums to find schools that are relatively generous with aid.</p>
<p>Regarding what classes to take: Again, please don’t fret that you’re undecided about your major. You don’t need to declare a major until the end of sophomore year in college. Take advantage of the opportunity to explore lots of subjects during the first 2 years while getting in your GE requirements. One specific reccomendation I’d have for you: Take an introductory Poli Sci class; sounds like you’re interested in that arena.</p>
